Blood Lust
by dianaglampers177
Summary: This is the story of Clare, a mother in Morrowind, and her fight against the god-king Vivec. Vivec has taken away her daughter, Lucia. Clare will do anything to get Lucia back.
1. Behold: Vivec

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Blood Lust

By Diana Moon Glampers

Chapter 1

Behold: Vivec

There was a woman, standing outside of her rustic home. The sun was out. The sky was clear. It was a beautiful day in Tamriel. She was hanging clothes up to dry after washing them for her husband and her daughter. Her name was Clare, an Imperial. Clare was somewhat serious. She had a troubled past, and was once addicted to skooma. She spent some time in prison because of this and from then, made a promise to herself to go straight. From there, she started a family and lived her idyllic life in the country. Her body was somewhat muscular, at least for a woman, though she tended to hide it underneath her dress. She had long hair, which she grew out to try to make herself look more feminine. She liked to take pride in her long, clean hair.

Clare's husband was Marcin, a hardworking mudcrab hunter. His job was hunting mudcrabs and selling their meat to butchers in the nearby towns, mostly Pelagiad. Marcin always came home dirty, covered in mud. He wasn't the best looking man in Tamriel, as he was short, chubby, and had an ugly scar on his face. Marcin was honest though, and a hard worker. He considered himself very lucky to have a wife that would take care of the house when he was gone.

Clare and Marcin also had a daughter, Lucia, who was almost 7. Lucia loved her parents. She would accompany Marcin on his mudcrab hunts, hoping to one day become a strong hunter just like him. She loved her mother too, but sometimes found her boring. She was always at home, cooking, cleaning, and finding other things to do to keep her busy. At the moment, Clare was hanging up laundry to dry in the yard. She could see her daughter leaving the house.

"Lucia? Where are you going, sweetie?" Clare said.

"The city," Lucia said.

She was referring to Pelagiad.

"What do you plan on doing in the city?" Clare asked.

Lucia was known to spend her pocket money on stupid things.

"You're not going to that merchant square again, are you?" Clare said.

Lucia was nervous.

"Uh…"

One day, she came home with a dead bird. The merchant said that it was a phoenix and would come back to life. Really, it was just a dead bird.

"Stay home. I need help making supper anyway," Clare said.

"Mommy…"

"You can go to town with Daddy tomorrow," Clare said.

"But he won't let me buy anything cool!" Lucia protested.

Clare smiled.

"Exactly."

She hung a pair of pants up to dry as her daughter sighed.

"One of the kids at the creek said that there was a talking bear for sale," Lucia said.

"Talking bear? Lucia, I wouldn't trust that," Clare said.

"Why not? If it can talk, I can tame it easier," she said.

Lucia put on a devious smile.

"…And I can use it to maul people! Then no one can mess with me!"

"Lucia, it's either a scam or dark magic. I wouldn't trust a talking bear," Clare said.

Lucia sighed.

"Okay, Mommy."

She helped her mother finish hanging up the laundry to dry.

-BL-

It was night. Clare and Lucia had already prepared dinner. Marcin was usually home by then, but today was different. They both sat at the table, waiting.

"I'm starving. Can't we eat?" Lucia whined.

"Not yet. We wait for Daddy. Okay?" Clare said.

"But shouldn't he be home right now? I'm hungry," Lucia said.

"I'm hungry too. Let's just wait, okay?" Clare said.

They waited a few more minutes before the door slammed open. Sure enough, it was Marcin. He looked pale and was out of breath. Clare, unaware of the situation, greeted her husband.

"Welcome home!" she said.

Lucia was overjoyed.

"Daddy!"

She ran in to hug her father, but he pushed her away.

"Sweetie, you need to hide," he said.

"Hide?"

Marcin turned to Clare.

"Find something, quick. They're going to take her away," Marcin said.

He grabbed a spare spear that he used for hunting. Clare grabbed one of her husband's swords.

"Who? What's going on?" Clare said.

"Daddy?" Lucia said.

"Lucia, go in your room and hide," Marcin said.

Lucia whimpered. She ran to her room, finally grasping the gravity of the situation. Marcin turned to his wife.

"The ordinators from Vivec City visited today. They're looking for our daughter. They're going to take her away."

Clare was still shocked.

"Why? Why do they need her?"

"I don't know. All I know is that I'm ready to kill every single one of them. If they're going to take away my baby girl, they'll need to go through me first," Marcin said.

Clare clutched her sword. She was nervous. Her palms were sweaty. She hadn't fought anyone since her prison days. Even then, she lost more often than she won.

"Lucia… I'll fight my hardest," Clare said.

Clare and Marcin heard marching outside. It was the ordinators. They marched up to the door, with large ebony clubs in hand. The lead ordinator called out to Marcin.

"Give us the girl. We promise we won't hurt you or your family if you surrender."

Another ordinator shouted.

"Give us the girl. Now!"

Clare and Marcin remained silent. The lead ordinator called out again.

"This is your only chance. Give us the girl right now, or else,"

"Or else what?" Marcin shouted.

"Or else we kill you both and scatter your bones in the wind."

Clare held her sword. She turned to her husband. He looked scared. His hands were shaking. He was experienced when it came to weapons, but normally, he only fought animals, weak animals.

"Stay calm. Okay?" he said to Clare.

It seemed ridiculous coming from him, but she didn't care.

There was a brief silence. Clare knew that they were talking, planning. She heard footsteps moving toward the back door. She motioned to her husband that she was going to go there. He nodded. As Clare moved toward the back door, she heard a loud thump. She saw a huge crack in her door, followed by another thump. She raised her sword.

"Are you ready to die, scum?" an ordinator shouted.

With one final whack, the ordinator broke through the door with his mace. He led three others with him, each one waving their weapons, longing to fight.

The ordinators charged at Clare. She swung her sword and slashed one of them across the face. Before she could do anything more, another slammed her over the head with his mace.

"Get the man too! Go! Go!" the leader barked out.

Clare stood up. She saw ordinators approaching her husband. She tried to rush in to defend him, but an ordinator stood in the way.

"Move aside!" Clare shouted.

She remembered her days in prison, having to prove she was tough to keep from being a victim. The ordinator wasn't intimidated. He swung his mace. Clare tried to parry, but the mace was too strong. It broke her sword in two. The ordinator smiled.

"Weak. Weak and pathetic."

He swung his mace again. Clare jumped out of the way and made a fist.

"You're the one who's weak."

She slammed her fist into the ordinator, as hard as she could. He fell down, on his back, breathless. Clare punched him again, this time in his Adam's apple. It was a technique she knew, and if it hit right, could cause a break in the windpipe and kill him. Clare screamed. She'd only killed once before, in prison, in self-defense. She wasn't used to the idea of ending a person's life, but knew that she'd have to if she was going to survive.

"You… You die!"

She smashed her fist into the ordinator's neck again. He gasped for air, trying to grab his mace. Clare took it from him. She smashed it over his head. His skull cracked. Blood poured out of his mouth. The ordinator shook on the ground, violently his movements growing fainted by the second. Clare smashed the mace over the ordinator's head again. His skull broke. His body fell limp. The ordinator was dead.

Clare turned around and saw the other three ordinators. One of them held Marcin down, his spear on the floor. The other two took turns beating him with their maces. He didn't scream in pain. When he opened his mouth, nothing came out, not even air. Clare raised her mace.

"Put him down. Now!"

One of the ordinators laughed.

"He's going to die. You can't do a thing about it."

It was true. Marcin had broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and was no longer able to breath.

"Put him down this instant," she commanded.

The other ordinator beat Marcin again. Clare knew they wouldn't listen to her. She swung her mace at the other ordinator. He tried to block. There was too much force behind her blow. His defense meant nothing. She smashed the mace into his head. There was a loud crack, a crack so loud that it had to be fatal. The ordinator fell to the floor. His jaw was broken, unhinged from the rest of his skull. His blood dripped from his face, into a puddle underneath his head.

The other two ordinators were shocked. Clare scowled.

"Which one of you wants to die next?"

The ordinator that was holding Marcin down dropped him and began to chant. The other ordinator joined him. Clare wasn't familiar with this ritual, but she knew that something was wrong. She started to move toward them, until she saw a portal open up in front of her. A man walked through, an elf with pale white skin. He wore very little, only a loin cloth and a gauntlet. His body was slim, but toned. His eyes were otherworldly, something unlike anything else on Tamriel. It dawned on Clare what she was seeing. It was the poet, one of the three god-kings of the land, Vivec.

"Ordinators, stand down," Vivec said.

They bowed to him.

"Thank you, your holiness," the lead ordinator said.

They dragged Marcin out of the house. Vivec turned to Clare.

"You! Mortal! You dare interfere with the passage of fate?"

He clenched his fists and looked into Clare's eyes. Clare gripped her mace.

"I'm not afraid of you."

It was a lie. She was very afraid. She'd never seen a god before, much less fought one.

"Hand over your daughter and I will make your death swift and painless," Vivec said.

Clare thought of the good times she had with her daughter. She remembered giving birth to her, playing with her as a baby, her first word, and even her first day of school. She remembered how Lucia would play with her hair when she was younger, how she would bring home friends she knew from the creek, and even taking her to town to buy "stupid" things. It all meant too much to Clare. She wasn't about to give that up.

"Well?" Vivec said.

Fire surged from his hands.

Clare gazed at him and clutched her weapon.

"I see. Then you are damned," Vivec said.

He tightly gripped onto Clare's arm and casted his spell. Clare lit up instantly. Her hair, her clothes, her skin- everything burned. She screamed in agony as she fell to the floor, scorching the floorboards with her heat. The air thickened with smoke and the horrid stench of burning skin. Tears collected in her eyes. Her vision was fading from the extreme heat.

Vivec turned away from Clare, and walked toward Lucia's bedroom, where she was hiding. She was scared. She clutched her knees as Vivec drew closer.

"Who… Who are you?" Lucia whimpered.

"I am the god king Vivec. Come with me. Now."

Clare moved toward Vivec, determined to save her daughter. She could hear Lucia from her room, on the verge of tears. She wouldn't last too much longer, not like this. She was still determined to fight.

"I'm coming, Lucia! I'm coming!"

Clare burst into Lucia's room, still burning. She could hardly see, but she could make out the figures of Vivec and Lucia in front of her.

"Stay away from my daughter!"

"Mommy! Help!"

Clare didn't know what she was doing, or even what direction Vivec was. She wound up to punch him. Her eyesight was fading. Her body was weak from the burns. She fell down. Clare tried to get up, until she felt Vivec's foot stomp her back down into the ash covered floor.

"I admire your commitment, mortal, but you must know your limits."

From there, an unspeakable agony. She laid helpless as Vivec dragged her entire world away.

Then, crushing, eternal, inescapable darkness.

-BL-

Marcin was on his kitchen floor, dying. He heard a scream, a terrible scream that belonged to his wife. He tried to stand up, to go help her, but his body was broken. He had a broken rib, jammed right into one of his lungs from his beating by the ordinators. His breathing was heavy. He knew that he couldn't do much.

" _Curse them… Curse my fragile body… Curse them all,"_ Marcin thought.

He heard footsteps coming toward him. It was Vivec and the two ordinators. One of the ordinators seemed pleased.

"Ah! Look! They left us a bounty. Shall we feast?"

They were referring to the food on the table, the dinner that Clare and Lucia had cooked that night.

"My Lord," one of the ordinators said, turning to Vivec, "Would you like to have the first bite?"

Vivec smiled. He examined the spread. There was a chicken, stuffed with dressing in the center of the table. It was still warm. Vivec tore a leg off and took a bite.

" _That was for me. My wife cooked that,"_ Marcin thought.

There were cut carrots in a bowl, glazed in a butter sauce. It was Lucia's work. She loved cutting vegetables. She'd try to cut the carrots in fancy ways to make them look more appetizing. One of the ordinators took a bite.

"Delicious."

Marcin could take no more. He grabbed the leg of the table. He tried to climb up, putting all of the effort and energy in his body into this one moment. An ordinator noticed the table wobbling. He tried to Marcin.

"Are you still alive?" the ordinator groaned.

There was pain, a blunt force driving through Marcin's head, a force stronger than his body, stronger than his skull.

Then, there was nothing.


	2. Say My Name

Chapter 2

Say My Name

"Is she dead?"

"No, she's breathing. Get her to a healer, quick!"

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know. The she looks burnt. Her eyes look bad too."

-BL-

"Can you hear me? Are you Awake?"

"…"

"You can't hear me, can you?"

"…"

"Who did this to you?"

"…"

-BL-

Clare was in a bed. She opened her eyes. Her vision was hazy. She could only see obscured shapes of things. She knew that she was somewhere, but she didn't know where. Her skin stung. It hurt all over. She tried to move her arm, but it only irritated the skin. She groaned in pain. There was a smell too, a smell of balm and burnt hair. She knew that it was her own.

"Hello?"

Clare heard someone speaking to her, a man. She couldn't tell who it was, but she could identify a human-like outline.

"Are you awake?" he said.

Clare groaned.

"I'm awake."

"What's your name?" the man said.

"Clare. My name is Clare."

"Hi, Clare. My name's Jason. I'm a guard."

Clare wasn't used to guards being on her side. Back in her criminal days, she always tried to avoid them.

"Clare… That's a beautiful name," Jason said.

Clare was silent. She didn't want to talk too much. When she spoke, she would shift her back and shoulders. That meant rubbing her body up against her bed sheets. She noticed that there was a material on parts of her skin, bandages. They were the only things that she was wearing.

Clare couldn't see herself, but she looked different. Large parts of her body were charred, red and black. Small sections of her skin had melted. There was not a single hair on her body. It had all burnt off.

"Can you see?" Jason asked.

"A little."

One of Clare's eyes no longer worked. Her other eye was heavily damaged. It would take some powerful healing magic to get her vision back. Even then, there were some things that even magic could not mend.

"Do you need some water?" Jason said.

"Yes," Clare replied.

Jason knew that burn victims needed plenty of water. Dehydration was a real problem, along with lung damage from the smoke. He returned with a bucket from his well, along with a cup.

"Drink it all up, it's good for you," he said.

Clare drank the water fast. She spilled a little bit of it, partially because she was eager to get some water, and partially because of how weak she was feeling.

"Thank you," Clare said.

"How are you breathing? Does it hurt?" Jason said.

"Yes," Clare replied.

Jason dug into his pockets and pulled out a bottle of potion.

"Drink this too. It'll make you hurt less," he said.

Clare complied. The taste was awful, like an explosion of bitterness. Her lungs felt irritated, like they were scrunching up and dying inside of her. Clare groaned.

"It's okay. You'll feel better," Jason said.

-BL-

The next few days were a blur for Clare. It was hard for her to keep awake. Her body always hurt, almost to the point that she was used to the pain. Every day, Jason would come in with food and water. Clare wasn't always hungry, but she ate anyway. She knew that her body needed something, anything to help it recover from what she went through.

Sometimes when Clare was alone at night, she'd think about her daughter, Lucia. She thought about what Vivec might want with her, what he'd do with her. It was what motivated her. Clare thought about Vivec all the time, how much she wanted to kill him for doing this to her, for what he had done to her husband, for what he had done to her daughter. Whenever she started to feel weak, like she felt as though she were going to give up, she remembered Vivec.

" _I'm going to kill you,"_ she thought.

" _I'm going to save my daughter and punish you for what you did to me, what you did to her."_

-BL-

It had been almost two weeks since the fire. Clare was in her bed, thinking. She didn't like to think. Her thoughts almost always went back to her daughter and what could be happening to her. Clare tried to distract herself. She…

"Clare?"

It was Jason. He walked into her room, holding some bandages and a rag. Clare sat up. She was strong enough to move, but still very weak from her burns.

"I figured your bandages were dirty and got you some new ones," he said.

It was true. Clare's bandages were dirty. Dirty bandages could lead to infections, something that Jason knew all too well as a guard. He'd seen other guards die of mortal wounds and infections before. He didn't want to see that happen to her.

"Do you need me to help?" Jason said.

Clare took the bandages from him.

"I'll be fine."

She tried to smile, but the burns on her face made it hurt.

Clare started to peel the bandages off of her burnt, aching skin. Jason averted his eyes. He'd seen her naked before; it was how he found her after the disaster. He still felt a little uneasy staring at her.

"Do you need me to leave?" he said.

"No, I don't mind," Clare replied.

It looked like she was healing, yet some of her wounds were permanent. Her skin looked awful, like an incomplete puzzle of flesh. Ridges of flesh went all across her torso like rivers of melted flesh. Chunks of her had failed to recover, even with the magic of potions.

Clare grabbed the wet rag and began scrub her arms. She started to, but she felt faint.

"Jason?" she said.

"Yes?"

Clare had lost a lot of blood as a result of her burns. She had recovered a lot in the last two weeks, but still had to be careful not to pass out from moving too fast.

"Jason, can you wash me, please?"

"Sure."

Jason grabbed the rag. He tried to be gentle, but he knew that it would still hurt her.

"You never did tell me who did this to you," Jason said.

Clare didn't want to say his name.

"It was…"

Fear gripped her. She couldn't finish her words.

"You're still not ready?" Jason said.

"No, I'm ready. He was… V…"

She couldn't bring herself to say his name. She felt weak, weak pathetic. Thoughts floated through her mind.

" _I shouldn't be scared. I should be able to say his name."_

" _It's Vivec! His name is Vivec! Can't you say it?"_

" _What the hell is wrong with you? You're not broken, Clare! You're not broken!"_

"He was V… V…"

She felt like she had to cry, but didn't.

" _You're better than this. Just say his name. Say it!"_

She didn't.

"I don't want to say his name," Clare said.

Jason nodded.

"You don't have to say anything you don't want to. We can just call him…"

"Bastard."

Clare repeated what she had just said.

"That bastard, he did this to me."

Jason scrubbed some dirt off of Clare's back, careful not to rub too hard. She sighed.

"I'm going to kill him."

"Please don't, Clare. You can barely walk," Jason said.

Clare stood up. Her movements were sudden and jerky. She looked like she could fall down at any second. Her vision darkened from her low blood pressure. She clenched her fist as hard as she could.

"I still have a lot of fight in me. I can take him," she said.

She punched the air, but fell forward. Jason caught her and sat her back down on her bed.

"I don't know, Clare," Jason said.

"I'm going to start training. I will the minute I'm strong enough to leave this bed. I'm going to kill him, even if it kills me."

Clare tried to wrap herself back up in bandages. Her coordination was off. Her movements were shaky. She turned to Jason.

"Can you help me, again?"

Jason nodded. He gently wrapped Clare up. Even then, it still stung when anything touched parts of her skin.

"Ouch!"

"Sorry," Jason said.

Once Clare was bandaged up again, she continued her rant.

"I'm going to kill that bastard, no matter what."

"I think you need to calm down. Just wait a while. You don't need to do this," Jason said.

Clare shook her head.

"He killed my husband. He has my daughter. I have to kill him, not just for me, but for them too."

Jason wanted to say no. He wanted to convince her to stop, but didn't. As a guard, it was his duty to protect the people of Tamriel. He remembered how he found her, burnt, broken, and on the verge of death. He was still nursing her back to strength. He didn't like to think that he'd give her a second chance at life, only to throw it away on revenge.

"I know what you're thinking, Jason. I won't let you or anyone else stop me," she said.

Jason kneeled down.

"I won't stop you," he said.

Clare was surprised. She wasn't expecting this.

"I'll train you. I'll protect you. I'll go with you, wherever you go, and help you."

Clare wasn't sure what to say. She expected him to say "No" and convince her not to.

"Jason?" she said.

He stared at her, expecting her to say something. Instead, she wrapped her arms around him.

"Thank you."


	3. Mortal

Chapter 3

Mortal

The sky was a sick, unearthly brown. There were noxious red fumes in the air. It was hard to see, hard to breathe. Clare was looking around, frantically. She knew that her daughter was here. She could feel it.

"Lucia? Lucia!"

She ran through the red fog. Her throat hurt, just breathing it in.

"Lucia?" she called.

"Mommy?"

Clare looked around. She could hear her daughter, calling to her, just beyond the next hill. She ran toward her, but the fumes were getting thicker. She wasn't sure if she could go on.

"Lucia?" she called out.

She could feel her throat scrunching up inside of her neck. She tried to call out again. No words came from her mouth. She screamed as loud as she could. No sound. She could hear laughing, hideous laughter coming from in front of her. It was Vivec.

"Clare, are you looking for someone?" Vivec said.

She tried to say something, but only coughed. Vivec lifted her up by the neck and smiled. He smacked her across the face. It hurt. Clare tried to hit back. She punched Vivec as hard as she could. Her fist collided with his face. Her knuckles hurt. He didn't feel a thing.

"Easy, mortal. I just want to help. After all, I found that daughter you were looking for," Vivec said.

He threw Clare down to the ground. She saw something next to her, something round. She waved her hands to clear away the red smog. What she saw shocked her. Vivec laughed.

"You like it, you worthless mortal?"

It was Lucia's head. Clare tried to scream. Tears flowed from her eyes. She ran up to Vivec, ready to punch him again, ready to make him pay for…

"Clare! Clare!"

"What?"

Clare opened her eyes. She was in her bed, with Jason standing over her. She had both of her hands in fists. They hurt. She stood up, out of her bed.

"I was having another nightmare," Clare said.

"I know. It was about him, wasn't it?" Jason said.

Clare nodded

"It was. That bastard," Clare replied.

She turned to the wall by her bed. There were a few damaged spots where she'd hit.

"It's okay. It was just a dream. It's okay," Jason said.

He wrapped his arms around Clare. She broke from him.

"I'm fine," she said.

It had been a few months since Clare lost to Vivec. She was strong enough to move again. She could walk, run, climb in and out of bed, and even cook. Her burns were still bad, but they didn't hurt anymore. She no longer needed bandages either. She wore normal clothes, a normal shirt and pants. She tried to live like she did before, back when she had a family. It was difficult, not having Lucia or her husband, Marcin.

Jason had also been training Clare, ever since she could stand up again. She wanted to feel like she could protect herself, especially after everything that had happened. Secretly, she also wanted to kill Vivec. Clare didn't care how much she had to train or how many lives she'd have to take, she was determined to get her daughter back.

Clare stood up and headed for the door.

"I need to practice some more," she said.

"More? We spent all yesterday training," Jason replied.

"I need more. I need to practice every day, all the time if I need to defend myself."

Jason admired Clare's enthusiasm. He sometimes wondered if he could get her to join The Imperial Guard at times.

"Let's go then, shall we?"

Jason grabbed his sword and went outside. Clare grabbed her's and followed. The training was about to start.

"Let's go over this again," Jason said.

He assumed a stance with his sword.

"If I come at you like this, what do you do?"

Jason charged at Clare. She bolted out of the way.

"What about here?"

He thrust his sword just below Clare's neck, careful not to hit her. She sidestepped it.

"Good! Now counterattack!"

Clare thrust her blade toward Jason. He dodged it and punched Clare in the shoulder. She cried out in pain.

"Remember, your arms and legs are weapons too," Jason said.

Clare nodded. She started to slash him, but stopped and instead kicked him in the ankles. Jason fell down. She raised her sword, ready for the final blow.

"Remember! Magic!"

Jason cast a shielding spell, the only magic he knew. It blocked Clare's blow and gave him a chance to get up. He slashed at Clare, who was also ready.

"Magic, yes!" she said.

She cast her shield spell as well. It blocked Jason's attack, which gave her an opening. She thrust at Jason, right for his chest, but stopped. If this were a real battle, Jason would have died. They both set their weapons down.

"Well, you won. Nice job," Jason said.

He was impressed. Normally, their training ended in Jason besting Clare.

"You taught me well," Clare said.

She sat down and wiped the sweat off of her head, satisfied with her skills. Jason gazed at her figure. Sometimes he'd think about her body, what it once was before it was burnt.

" _I wonder what she looked like before I met her?"_ he thought.

Jason liked to imagine that Clare was once beautiful, far more gorgeous than she actually was.

" _Forget it. That's in the past. Besides, she used to be in prison. She was probably one of those weird muscled up girls, anyway."_

Clare gave him a concerned look.

"Is something wrong?" She said.

Jason snapped out of his daydream.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just still surprised that you beat me. That's all."

Now that she had bested Jason, Clare decided that she was ready. She decided to make her announcement.

"I'm leaving tomorrow," Clare said.

"Where?" Jason said.

"To… A city," she said.

"Which city?" Jason said.

Vivec City was unfortunately named after the being that took Lucia.

"It's a city to the south, filled with canals and pyramids. I don't know what it's called," Clare said.

"Oh! You mean Vivec City. I've been there a few times. They have some interesting things there," Jason said.

"That's where he took Lucia. I'm going to go there and find him. Then, I'm going to kill him," Clare said.

On some level, Clare didn't want to go. She didn't want to continue. She wanted to move on with her life and accept that she was never going to see her daughter again. Her thoughts echoed through her head.

" _She's probably dead."_

" _Move on."_

" _This isn't courage. This is stupidity."_

" _He didn't kill you. He was merciful."_

Clare clenched her fist.

" _No. I'm doing this. I don't care if I die. I'm going to kill him."_


	4. Nice Things

Chapter 4

Nice Things

It was morning. Clare was packing for the journey to Vivec City. Jason was out, explaining to the head guards that he was going to escort Clare on her way. She was thinking about what she needed.

"Swords… Food… A canteen… What else?"

She looked through the house to see if there was anything she needed. A walk to Vivec only took a couple of hours, but she wanted to be prepared anyway. There was always the chance that monsters would attack or they would get lost. Jason sometimes talked about steadily growing cliff racer attacks coming farther and farther away from the mountains.

" _Potions. I should take some along, just in case,"_ Clare thought.

She walked over to Jason's spare room, where he usually kept his healing potions. There was also a mirror in there, an old, large one that once belonged to his grandfather. She started to grab some potions, until she noticed her reflection. It was a dismal reminder of her appearance. She paused and put the potion down and looked at herself.

" _Hideous. I look like a monster."_

Her face was revolting, a phantasmagoria of scars and burns. One of her eyes was nearly dead. It didn't move with the other. Her scalp was visible. She once had long, beautiful hair, but it had all burnt away. Her hands were the most human thing about her, and even then, they were calloused, worn, and had their share of burn scars.

" _I can't be seen like this,"_ she thought.

Clare felt her scalp, her bare, bald scalp. She used to have hair, long, gorgeous hair. She used to take pride in it, believing that it was the prettiest thing about her. Clare never considered herself a beauty, but she did try to take care of herself. She liked to try different styles with her daughter. She cleaned it rigorously, to try to make it look perfect for Marcin. Those days were gone. Clare gazed into her reflection and spoke.

"It's never growing back, is it?"

Clare almost never left Jason's house. When she did, it was only to train in his yard, and even then, people didn't see her often. Leaving for Vivec would mean being outside far longer than usual. There were plenty of opportunities for people to see her, to stare at her, to become repulsed by her.

" _I need a hat, a hood, a mask, something,"_ she thought.

Clare opened a dresser in Jason's spare room. She looked through Jason's clothes. She started to, until she heard the door open. It was Jason.

"I'm back. I filled out all the papers I need. We're going to Vivec!" he said.

He walked over to Clare and noticed her digging through his things.

"Looking for something?" Jason said.

"A hat. Do you own any?" Clare said.

"What do you need a hat for?" Jason said.

"To cover my scalp. I don't people staring at me."

"They won't stare," Jason said.

"Don't lie to me, Jason. I look like an Argonian without any scales."

"You don't look like that, Clare."

She raised her voice.

"I told you not to lie to me!"

Jason was taken aback. Clare realized how this had escalated and calmed down.

"I'm sorry, Jason."

"No. You're right. People will notice you, maybe give you unwanted attention," Jason said.

He reached into his closet and pulled out a hat, one with a wide brim to help cover up the face. It looked fine, unusually good for someone like Jason. Clare wasn't used to nice things.

"This is lovely. Where did you get it?" she said.

"It belonged to my mother. She would have passed it on to my sister," Jason said.

Clare was intrigued.

"You have a sister?"

"I had one. The corprus took her when she was 16."

"I'm sorry," Clare said.

"Don't be. You had nothing to do with it," Jason said.

Jason walked over to his kitchen and sat down at the table. Clare sat with him. He poured himself a cup of water.

"I'm pretty excited for this journey. Protecting the same few roads gets me in a rut. It's nice to branch out sometimes," Jason said.

Clare was silent. Jason sipped some water.

"Vivec's a holy city, you know. Did you want to pay a tribute to him while we're there?"

Clare shook her head.

"I never was a spiritual person. I think I attended a few rituals when I was a kid, but otherwise, no."

The thought of paying tribute to Vivec made her shudder.

"I never got into the stuff either. Those gods don't deserve any respect."

Clare was intrigued again.

"Really?"

Jason nodded.

"We have divine beings living right here in Tamriel. They have the power to end all disease, crime, and poverty. What do they do instead? They make us create temples to their ego. They're not getting any respect from me, not until they do something."

Clare wanted to smile, but held it in. She felt good hearing that from Jason.

"You can't count on the gods to do anything around here. If I had my way, we wouldn't have anymore criminals," Jason grumbled.

"I was a criminal, once. I used to drink skooma. All the time," Clare said.

"That stuff's dangerous, Clare," Jason said.

"I know. That's why I quit. It made me feel big and strong when I drank it, though. I couldn't get enough of the stuff," Clare said.

"I'm not getting you any confiscated goods, Clare," Jason said.

"No, I don't mean that. It's just that… I guess I always felt like I needed to be bigger and stronger in the world. You know?" she said.

Jason smiled.

"You are strong. Most people would never survive what you've been through," he said.

"I know, but… The bastard that did this to me is tough. I don't know if I can do it," Clare said.

Jason felt the urge to say something discouraging.

" _It's dangerous. I don't want to see you hurt."_

" _You don't have to. Vengeance solves nothing."_

" _Then don't fight him. Be the better person."_

" _You could just stay here, with me. I'll keep you safe. I promise."_

He didn't say any of those things, but he wanted to.

"I'm with you, Clare. I'll be by your side, every step of the way," Jason said.

He felt uneasy about saying this. Clare smiled and wrapped her arm around him.

"Thank you, Jason. You don't know how much this means to me," she said.

Jason embraced her for a few seconds before they let go of each other.

Jason looked out his window, out at the sky.

"We should get going soon. If we start now, we should reach Vivec by sundown."

Clare nodded. She put on her hat. It was a very comfortable and did its job of obscuring her face well.

"Right. We'll be there by sundown," Clare repeated.

They gathered their supplies and began their journey.


	5. The Passage of Fate

Chapter 5

The Passage of Fate

Clare and Jason had been walking for a few hours. They'd seen green forests, rocky hills, flowing streams, and lush fields. Being out in nature reminded Clare of how beautiful Tamriel was.

"We should be getting close to Vivec soon," Jason said.

He pointed to a river.

"See that? The cities canals empty out into that river. We should be able to…"

Before Jason could finish his words, he heard a loud, screeching sound. He turned around and saw Cliff Racers, a whole flock of them flying overhead. They cast shadows onto the earth, like a cloud blocking out the sun.

"That's the most of them I'd ever seen," Clare said.

"I don't know why, but they've been out of control lately. They've been real aggressive too," Jason said.

He led Clare toward a thicket, filled with tall grass and small trees.

"If we hide here, they might not see us," Jason said.

Clare reached for her sword. She was ready to fight them if she had to. Jason already had his out, as if he expected a fight. They watched as the cliff racers dove down near the stream to drink.

Clare watched closely as the cliff racers flew just over the ground. They began to spread out and move on their own, no longer as a flock. They were hunting for food. Jason knew this behavior. He'd been fighting these monsters for a few weeks now and had a good idea of how cliff racers acted.

"Clare…" he whispered.

She nodded.

"We need to move. They want meat," he said.

Jason started to lead Clare away through the thicket, trying to move slowly. Before they could get too far, they heard another noise, an almost deafening screech. They had been spotted. The cliff racers flew toward them, their ravenous jaws snapping as they drew closer.

"Clare?" Jason said.

She drew her sword.

"I know. I'll fight my hardest," she said.

The cliff racers tore through the thicket, snapping down branches and pushing down the tall grass. Clare and Jason were surrounded. More of them flew in from above, like vultures closing in on their prey. Jason took a defensive stance.

"Clare, stand behind me."

She nodded. She assumed a defensive stance as well. The cliff racers closed in on them. The onslaught began.

A cliff racer lunged at Jason, its teeth snapping, hungry for meat. Jason slashed into the monster, right through its weak neck. The creature's head fell off. Another cliff racer lunged at his back. Clare slashed her sword, right through the monster's head. The cliff racer fell down, its jaw dismembered. She saw more coming for her, two at once. Clare sliced into one of them, chopping its head clean off. The other one was too fast for her. She felt the teeth of the cliff racer digging into her arm. It jerked its head around, determined to pull of the "meat".

In that moment, everything came back to Clare. Her previous fight, the one with Vivec. Her burns. Her loss. Everything was taken away from her that day. Another cliff racer bit into her. It thrashed about. She could feel blood dripping down her arms. She wanted to fight. She was afraid.

"Jason…" she said.

He was busy fighting off another cliff racer.

"Clare, what's wrong?" he said.

Thoughts rushed through her head.

" _You're in too deep."_

" _You should have stayed home."_

" _You can't beat some cliff racers? What makes you think you'll stand a chance against_ _ **him**_ _?"_

" _Just die. All the pain will be gone if you just die."_

Clare tried to shake these thoughts out of her head. Jason slammed his sword into one of the cliff racers. The other backed off and hissed.

"Clare, you need to help me. There are too many of them. I can't fight them on my own."

"I… I…"

She tried to clench her sword. It felt heavy, like she couldn't move it. There was a force holding her back, a force within her that resided in her head.

" _You're not good enough."_

She blocked it out and focused.

"I'll try."

Clare charged toward a cliff racer. She slammed the dull edge of her sword into its head. She screamed. Its skull cracked. Death. She turned to another cliff racer. It lunged toward her. She heard another voice, one that didn't come from her head, but from her heart.

" _Move."_

Clare jumped out of the way. She jammed her sword into the cliff racer's body. It hissed in pain. She pulled out her blade. Its body fell to the ground, dead. Her heart spoke again.

" _Keep going."_

" _You can do it. You can do anything!"_

" _Don't just do it for you. Do it for her."_

Clare saw more cliff racers descending on her and Jason. She clenched her sword.

" _Lucia… I'm coming."_

Another cliff racer lunged at her. Clare put up her hand and cast the shield spell. The cliff racer slammed into it, disoriented from the blow. She sliced into its neck. Another one dover at her from the sky. She raised her sword and swung. Another cliff racer was dead.

"I'm not going to lose! Especially not to you!"

More cliff racers dove at her from the air. She sliced through one of them, but there were too many. They bit her. They ripped at her skin, trying to pull the "meat" from her bones.

" _I can't give up… I have to keep going!"_

Clare put up her shield spell again. It knocked the cliff racers back. She held up her sword again and cut another cliff racer's head clean off. Even then, there were still too many of them.

"Jason!" Clare shouted.

"Hold on. I'll be there soon."

Clare killed another cliff racer, one that was still disoriented from ramming into her shield spell. Another one got up and bit into her.

"Jason!"

"I'm right here."

Jason cleaved the cliff racer, right through its weak neck.

"Thanks," Clare said.

They both stood back to back and assumed defensive stances again. Some of the cliff racers were flying away. They knew that this wasn't worth it. One of them stuck around. It screeched, determined to kill its prey.

"I've had enough of you monsters!" Clare shouted.

She stabbed right into its body. The cliff racer fell to the ground, lifeless. The whole flock had either died or retreated. Jason and Clare had won.

Jason and Clare put their swords away and left the thicket. It was still daylight and they had plenty of time to reach Vivec.

"We should have killed them all," Clare said.

Jason shook his head.

"It wouldn't be worth it."

"They're just going to find other travelers and attack them. We can't have them roaming around like that," Clare said.

"There are countless flocks of them. One less would make no difference," Jason replied.

Clare was silent. She hated the idea that these monsters were so rampant in Tamriel.

"It would make travelling better, for everyone," Clare said.

Jason silently agreed. They continued walking.

" _She's rigght. Someone should do something about those monsters. If only the gods cared…"_ he thought.

Jason tried to distract himself from his thoughts. He turned to Clare. There were a few bloody spots on her clothes. It made him concerned.

"Are you hurt?" Jason said.

"Only a little. What about you?" Clare replied.

"I'm fine. I think I got bit a couple of times, but I've been hurt worse."

Clare rolled up one of the sleeves on her shirt. She saw the burn scars all across her, along with a new one, thanks to the cliff racer. It was a cruel reminder of her body's limits.

"Do you need any bandages?" Jason said.

"No. Maybe a healing potion, though," Clare said.

Jason dug into his pockets and pulled out a small flask. Clare drank it.

"Thanks, again," she said.

"It's not a problem." Jason said.

He stared at her for a second.

"Is something wrong?" Clare said.

"It's nothing. You're just smiling, that's all," he said.

"What's so special about that?" Clare said.

"You don't smile often. It looks good," he said.

Clare sighed.

"Don't flatter me, Jason. I'm hideous."

"I won't argue with that," Jason said.

Clare paused. She didn't expect him to say that.

"A smile can make anyone look better, though," Jason said.

An awkward silence followed.

"We should rest. Maybe we can reach the city tomorrow," Clare said.

"I know. I'm worn out from all that fighting too," Jason replied.

-BL-

The sun was setting. Clare and Jason had already ate the food that they packed for the day and were ready to sleep for the night. Clare wasn't sure if she could, though. Tomorrow was going to be the biggest fight of her life. She wasn't sure if she could win. She would be facing off against a god, something thought to be beyond mortals like her. Clare turned to Jason.

"I never did tell you about him, did I?" she said.

"About who?" he said.

"The bastard. I never told you what he's like," Clare replied.

"Well, I know he's a magic user. They're pretty formidable, so I know to approach him with caution," Jason said.

"He's more than just a regular mage," Clare said.

"Really? What do you mean?" Jason replied.

"His name is…"

She couldn't bring herself to say it. His name, it hurt her just thinking about it. She remembered what it felt like to be burned, how it felt to have her whole life destroyed. She didn't want to say it. She was scared.

"He's…"

"You can tell me," Jason said.

Clare took a deep breath and said it.

"Vivec. He's the god king of the Dunmer, Vivec."

Jason was perplexed.

"Why would he want to hurt you? What does he have to gain from taking your daughter? It doesn't make any sense."

"I agree. It doesn't make sense. He did it, though. And… I'm going to fight him," Clare said.

Jason wanted to tell her that it was impossible. He felt uneasy about fighting a god, especially one that was worshipped by a good portion of Tamriel.

"You… You aren't going to leave me now, are you?" Clare said.

She knew that what she was doing wasn't smart. She knew that gods were above mortals. She knew how foolish this was.

"Clare…" Jason said.

She braced herself.

"…It doesn't matter anymore."

"What?"

"It doesn't matter. I'll fight with you. I don't care if we're up against a god, a dragon, or even just a lowly scrib. I'll fight with you, to the end," Jason said.

Clare was at a loss for words.

"Hey, you're an Imperial, right? I'm an Imperial guard. We need to look out for each other, especially in times like these," he said.

"Jason?" Clare said.

"Yes?"

She stuttered for a bit before spitting it out.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Clare. I love you too."


	6. Crispy

Chapter 6

Crispy

Clare and Jason arrived at Vivec. They were walking through the vast network of pyramids and walkways, sometimes getting a few stares from the ever-present ordinators. Clare didn't like them. She remembered the last time she saw ordinators, back when her house was attacked. She tried to hide under her hat, in hopes that none of them would recognize her. Jason could tell that she was scared.

"Don't worry. We're almost at the sacred chamber," he whispered.

Clare nodded. Her body was sweating. Her blood was racing. She was nervous that she was finally going to encounter her enemy. In the back of her mind, she knew that she couldn't beat him, but in her heart, she knew that she could win if she had courage.

Clare and Jason arrived outside of Vivec's sacred chamber. There were two ordinators standing guard.

"Hello, gentlemen," Jason said to them.

The two ordinators gave him a mean look. One of them spoke up.

"What is your business here, Imperial? This is a sacred place. Are you a pilgrim?"

"Yes, we are pilgrims," Clare said.

She raised her head and showed them her disfigured face.

"I have been wounded and wish to be blessed so that I may heal," she said.

The ordinator growled.

"Don't you have your Imperial deities to turn to? Go home," he said.

"But we are not in the land of the Imperials. We are in the land of Dunmer. Our gods are powerless here. They mean nothing, might as well be myths," Jason said.

The ordinator was not buying it.

"Pilgrims aren't usually ones to give up their gods so easily. Something's suspicious about you," he said.

"Go home, and don't come back," the other ordinator said.

Jason was getting impatient. Vivec was mere footsteps away. He turned to Clare.

"I'm going to distract them. Sneak in while they're gone," he whispered.

Clare nodded. Jason turned to the ordinators.

"Okay, I lied. I'm not here to bless this woman. She's just my slave," he said.

One of the ordinators laughed.

"First the Khajiits, then the Argonians… Your slaves get uglier and uglier every year."

Clare frowned. Jason let out a laugh.

"True, but she is strong, and a strong slave is a hardworking slave," he said.

"She doesn't look that strong," the ordinator said.

"Oh trust me, I'm strong, way stronger than you'll ever be," Clare boasted.

The other ordinator let out a chuckle.

"She's a real keeper, isn't she?" Jason said.

"She's got a real mouth. You should train her to be obedient," the ordinator said.

"She is obedient, just only to me, like any good slave," Jason said.

Clare noticed that he was reaching for his sword. The ordinators were so caught up in his story that they didn't see it. Clare followed his lead. She crept up to one of them.

"Keep your distance, slave girl. I…"

Slice.

Clare slashed the ordinator, right across the neck. Jason unsheathed his sword and stabbed the other ordinator, in one fast motion. Both the guards were dead. Jason turned to Clare.

"That was good. Let's go, before more of them find out," he said.

Jason raised his blade to break the door down. Clare stopped him.

"Wait," she said.

"Yes?"

"I want to do this alone. This is my fight. I…"

"Clare, I won't let you do that. You can't take him alone," Jason said.

She could feel anger building up inside of her, but suppressed it.

"Jason, please. I need you to stand guard, make sure more of them don't come," Clare said.

"No, Clare. I don't want to see you die. I…"

Clare moved in close to him. She embraced him and whispered.

"I'm ready to die. I'm also ready to live. Just stand back, okay?"

"But… It's suicide! It's…"

She kissed him. Jason was speechless.

"You've been my perfect knight in shining armor. But I don't need a knight right now. I need a guard."

Jason nodded.

"Do what you do best. Guard the door. Make sure no one comes in," Clare said.

"I will," Jason replied.

"Thanks," Clare said.

She reached into the ordinator's pockets. There was a key in there, an enchanted key that could open any door in Vivec, even ones that were sealed shut with magic. For a moment, Jason felt stupid about trying to break down the door.

"Clare?" he said.

"Yes?"

"Come back in one piece."

"I will. Thank you."

-BL-

The door was sealed shut with powerful magic, but in the end, every lock had its key. There was no truly unreachable room, no place in the world that was impossible to reach, not even for gods.

"Vivec… I'm coming."

She opened the door and slammed it shut. As she expected, she saw her nemesis, Vivec. He was in the center of the room, meditating, floating in the air. It was as if he didn't even notice that Clare had arrived. She approached him.

"Vivec. I'm here," she said.

He opened his eyes.

"Leave. I have no business with you, whoever you are," he said.

"You don't remember me?" Clare said.

"I have touched many lives over the years. I don't care who you are. Leave."

Clare felt a little bit insulted that someone as powerful as a god could not be bothered to remember her. She took off her hat.

"You nearly killed me before. I'm back for round two," she said.

Vivec groaned. He stood up.

"You don't remember me, do you? Aren't gods omniscient or something? You're not a god at all!" Clare said.

"You doubt my power, mortal?" Vivec said.

His hands crackled with lightning.

"I've been doubting it for a while, actually," Clare said.

Vivec snarled. Clare drew her sword.

"You kidnapped my daughter, you bastard. I'm going to do whatever it takes to get her back. Do you hear me?"

Vivec clenched his fists.

"You're a fool. You will die a fool's death."

Clare took an offensive stance and charged at Vivec. He moved out of the way and countered. He struck her with one of his fists. Lightning coursed through her body. Clare fell to her knees, stunned. Vivec followed up by jabbing her, right in the chest. Clare tried to shout in pain. She was silent. Only air escaped her lips.

"I remember you now. You're the mother of that child," Vivec said.

Clare stood back up and put up her fists.

"Give her back. Now," she said.

"Never," Vivec said.

Clare charged at Vivec again. She swung her sword. Vivec blocked the blade. He grabbed it from her hands with blood dripping from his hands.

"Pathetic."

He snapped the blade in two with his bare hands.

"I don't need weapons to beat you," Clare hissed.

She made a fist. Vivec assumed a defensive stance. It didn't help him. Clare gave him an uppercut. She followed it up with a jab to his face. Vivec tried to counter her blow, but was too slow. He'd underestimated his opponent. He fell to the ground, blood dripping from his mouth.

"You… You made me bleed!"

Vivec stood up. He examined his hand and the blood coming from his mouth. Vivec repeated himself.

"…You made me bleed!"

"Hurts, doesn't it?" Clare taunted.

Vivec's fists lit up with fire.

"Mortal, you will know your place!"

Vivec charged at Clare with inhuman speed. Clare cast her shield spell. Instantly, a force field formed around her. Vivec slammed his fist into it. Her shield shattered like glass. His magic was far greater than hers. It would be useless against him. Vivec smiled.

"Pitiful."

He slammed his fist into her shoulder and followed up with another body blow. Clare could feel it again, the fire, if only for a split second. Her skin was singed from the attack. Fear crept into her heart.

" _Run away. You're in too deep. It's not too late. Run away."_

"No!" she shouted.

She jabbed her fist right into Vivec's chest. He reeled from the blow. Clare continued the assault. Uppercut. Jab. Knee. Elbow. Vivec fell to the ground. Clare panted. She'd worn herself out from that attack. Vivec stood back up. His face was bruised. Some of his teeth were missing.

"Don't you see? You are bound by mortal limitations! There is no way you can win. I am simply greater than you," Vivec said.

Clare put up her fists.

"I don't care. I'm going to fight you."

Vivec's hands flared up with magic energy.

"Very well. You shall feel the true power of a god!"

Vivec charged at Clare. She tried to block, but couldn't. She was still tired from her previous attack. Vivec grabbed Clare by the arm. Fire poured out from his hand and onto Clare. The heat charred her skin. The flames spread onto her clothes. She could feel the fire intensifying, growing hotter by the second. This was it, the same attack that nearly killed her. She tried to break free from his grasp. He was strong. She could feel his fingers digging into her flesh, her skin searing at his touch. Clare was determined to break free. She struggled. She thrashed. She did all she could to get Vivec off of her.

" _No. Not this time. I'm stronger now."_

Clare grabbed Vivec by the neck and began to squeeze. He tried to push her hands away. He batted at them with his free hand. It wasn't enough. Clare squeezed.

"I'm going to do whatever it takes," she growled.

Vivec began to choke. His grip on her was loosening.

"I'm going to kill you. I don't care if it kills me to. You're going to die."

Vivec let go of Clare's arm. He jabbed her, right in the gut. Pain surged through her. She had to let go of his neck. Vivec pushed her to the ground, finally free from her grip. He turned to Clare, who was still reeling in pain.

"You don't know when to quit, mortal," Vivec said.

Clare climbed to her feet. Her shirt was still ablaze from Vivec's fire. She threw it off.

"I may be mortal, but I can still take you down," she said.

Vivec stared at Clare's half-naked body. There were burns all over her. Her arms, her abdomen, her back, and her chest, everything was covered in scars. Not all of them were not recent ones from this fight, but old ones that failed to heal.

"You did this to me, you bastard. Now you're going to pay, not just for what you did to me, but to my husband and my daughter."

Vivec stared at Clare's exposed body. He couldn't help but smile at how grotesque she looked.

"You're a crispy one, aren't you?"

His hands flared up with magic again. He was ready. Clare assumed a defensive stance.

"Your husband, Marcin, he knew when to die. He didn't interfere with the passage of fate," Vivec said.

Clare stared into Vivec's eyes, his unearthly, evil eyes. She clenched her fist, barely able to control her anger.

"You'll never see your daughter again," Vivec added.

He charged at Clare. She cast her shield spell again. He broke through it, effortlessly, but it gave her enough time to jump out of the way.

"My magic may be weak…"

Clare jabbed Vivec, right in the back of the head.

"…but it works."

She cast the spell again. Vivec snapped his fingers. Her shield spell dissipated into nothingness.

"Nice try, mortal."

Vivec threw a kick at Clare. She tried to put up her shield spell again, but it didn't work. Vivec could counter her magic before it could be cast. She felt Vivec's foot go straight into her ribs. She fell back, but kept her footing.

"Your magic is weak and it won't work anymore. What do you have to say for yourself now, mortal?"

Vivec slammed his fist right into Clare's abdomen. His fist was cold as ice. She could feel chills reverberating through her body. The fact that she was topless and hadn't a single hair on her body did not help her. Vivec followed up with another icy jab. This time, Clare was ready. She made a fist and swung. They collided. Both Vivec and Clare's blows connected. They both fell down.

Vivec stood back up. Blood was dripping down from his face. He was covered in bruises. Clare stood up as well, also beaten badly. She was shaking. She wasn't sure why. It could have been from the cold or the adrenaline rushing through her body. She wiped the blood off of her face and put up her fists. Vivec sneered.

"Give up, mortal."

"I never give up."

Vivec charged. He smashed his knee into her gut and followed up with an elbow to her neck. Clare regained her footing and slammed her fist into Vivec's face. For the first time, he cried out in pain. Clare put on her most sadistic smile. She jabbed the god king in the gut again. Another scream. He fell to the ground.

Vivec started to get up, but Clare pounced on him. She grabbed him by the neck. Her heartbeat raced at the thought of wringing the last drop of life from her nemesis.

"Say my name," Clare said.

Vivec was silent. She squeezed his neck harder.

"Say it!"

Vivec grinned.

"Mortal," he gasped.

Clare was furious. She screamed.

"Say my name, you bastard!"

Vivec knew that she was angry. She wasn't paying attention to him, but what he was going to say. He cast a spell, a thunder spell. The magic radiated from Vivec's fingers and exploded into a blast of lightning. Clare was blown back by the blast. She hit a wall. Her back hurt. Her breath was short. There was a ringing in her ears, but only for a moment. Vivec took this time to stand up. He was gasping for air.

"You're persistent. I'll give you that," he said as he approached Clare.

"I'd say the same about you," Clare wheezed.

She stood up with both of her fists out.

Both Clare and Vivec were beaten. They were both covered in cuts and bruises. Clare noticed that Vivec's chest was heaving, like his body might have been pushed to its limit. Vivec noticed that Clare was shaking, like she was having trouble just standing up.

"It ends here, Clare. Now you die."

Vivec rushed at Clare, the last of his magic surging through his fists. Fire, ice, and lightning radiated from his hands. It was his ultimate spell, The Hand of Vivec. Clare extended her fist. She slammed it right into her enemy's face. She could feel his fist tearing into her, like it was going to break through her skin, her muscles, and finally her bones. The pain was like nothing she had ever felt before. She could feel her body failing her. She wanted to give in and fall. Her body ached. Her joints felt like they were going to die.

" _No… I need to keep going! I need to fight, fight through this pain!"_

She forced herself to continue, driving her fist further into Vivec's skull. She could hear cracks, his bones breaking.

" _Just a little more…"_

She could feel her body giving in. Her knees buckled. Her vision left her. She couldn't even see. Vivec whispered.

"…Stronger… I am stronger than you…"

His body weakened. Clare could feel his magic fading. He fell to his knees. He tried to say something, but no words came from his mouth. Clare wanted to deliver a final blow, one last punch to his face. She collapsed, too weak to finish him. Vivec fell down, onto his face. All of his energy was gone. His heart beat faded.

Death.


	7. Someday

Chapter 7

Someday

Clare's vision returned. She saw Vivec's body in front of her, the form of a god, defeated. His body began to disintegrate into light. The colors were ones that Clare had never seen before, ones that mortals were never meant to perceive. His lifeless body, his husk, was gone. Even his blood, his blood that was smeared all over Clare's fists vanished. There was only a pile of dust, bright gold dust that glowed in the darkness.

" _He's gone. I did it. I won."_

A feeling of melancholy swept over her. It almost felt wrong that she'd slain a god. It wasn't like killing an animal or a human. It felt much different, like something terrible, wonderful, and indescribable was gone from this world and could never return.

Clare shook the melancholy out of her head.

" _He's not worth crying over. Besides, I have more important things to think about. My daughter's in here, somewhere."_

She tried to stand up. Her legs wouldn't move. Her arms were weak, too weak to hold her up.

" _No, Lucia. I need to get up. I need to find Lucia!"_ she thought.

She called out.

"Lucia! Lucia! Are you here? Lucia?"

There was no answer. Her head was filled with bad thoughts.

" _She's probably dead."_

" _He could have banished her to oblivion."_

" _This was all stupid, very stupid. You're going to die. For what? This?"_

She shook those thoughts away and listened to her heart.

" _She's still alive. I know it. I just need to stand up. I just…"_

"Clare?"

Clare looked up and saw Jason in front of her. She wasn't sure how he got there, but was glad to see him.

"Jason? I thought I told you to…"

"Guard the door, yes," he said.

He pulled Clare up to her feet. Her legs started to wobble, like she was going to fall down. Jason pulled a flask from his pocket, full of healing potion.

"Drink this," he said.

Clare drank the potion as fast as she could. Some of it even spill down her cheeks.

"I've got another. Here," Jason said.

He handed her a second flask. Clare gulped it down in a matter of seconds.

"Better?" Jason said.

"A little," Clare replied.

She was still in a lot of pain. Some wounds could not be mended with potions had to heal naturally.

Clare looked at the open door to Vivec's chamber. The halls were empty, save for a few dead ordinators. Clare was perplexed.

"Weren't there more ordinators?" Clare said.

"Only a few. I fought off maybe five of them before they started to retreat. A bunch of cowardly rats, they are," Jason said.

"Five of them?" Clare said.

"They're weak. They never have to fight anything, what with their god king Vivec here to protect them. They forget how to defend themselves when they're up against a real guard," Jason said.

Clare looked around in Vivec's chamber and saw a gem on the floor. It was a soul gem, a prison where beings were kept, but isolated as long they were in there. Clare tried to bend over, but her back ached. She turned to Jason.

"Can you get that for me?" she said.

Jason bent over and lifted the soul gem up. He could feel someone inside of there, a person.

"Is that her?" Jason said.

She handed it to Clare. Almost instantly, she recognized it as her daughter's soul. She handed it back to Jason.

"Break it open. Please," Clare said.

Jason tossed the soul gem onto the ground. It shattered into many pieces. He could see the soul, a young girl, fly out of it. Clare wanted to say something. She was overwhelmed with emotion. Only one word escaped her mouth.

"…Lucia."

Lucia didn't recognize her mother. She'd changed a lot since the last time they met. Lucia's ghost turned to Jason.

"Don't let the monster hurt me! Please! Please!"

Jason tried to hold Lucia, but his hands went right through her. Clare turned to her daughter.

"Lucia, I'm not a monster. It's me, Mommy."

Lucia tilted her head. This was like a nightmare. Vengeance had transformed her into something hideous, something that her daughter could barely recognize. Dark thoughts crept into Clare's mind.

" _She wouldn't have wanted this, would she? This was all for nothing. I shouldn't have done this. I…"_

"Mommy?"

Lucia walked toward her mother, finally recognizing her. Clare couldn't hold back the tears. She leaned in to hug her daughter, but she went right through her.

"Lucia, I'm so glad to see you again."

Lucia noticed her mother, her burns, her bruises, her open wounds, everything she had been through to get where she was.

"Mommy… What happened?" Lucia said.

"It doesn't matter, Lucia. We're finally together again," Clare said.

Lucia hovered her arms around Clare, careful not to go through her. It was the closest thing she could do to hugging her. Jason stood back so that they could have their moment together. Once they were done, Lucia looked sad.

"Mommy… I'm sorry. I can't be with you for long," she said.

"What? What do you mean?" Clare said.

Lucia's ghostly form began to dissipate.

"I'm the spirit of The Nerevarine. I have a destiny, a purpose," she said.

"Where are you going?" Clare said.

"I'm going… Somewhere, somewhere where I'm needed. Don't worry, I'll come back. I promise," Lucia said.

"You promise?" Clare said.

"I have to go. They need me, the new gods."

Clare wasn't sure how to feel. She wanted to scream. She wanted to curse the new gods' names. She wanted to kill them all, just like she did Vivec. She also wanted to stop. She'd nearly broken herself to be with her daughter, only for her to disappear moments later. Lucia could tell that her mother was in pain. She started to cry.

"I'm sorry, Mommy. I love you."

"I'll always love you, Lucia," Clare sobbed.

Lucia disappeared into thin air, no longer in this world. Jason helped Clare to her feet. She was still sobbing.

"Are you okay?" Jason said.

"I'm fine," Clare said as her tears stopped.

"You sure?" Jason said.

"I'm sure," she replied.

Clare and Jason left Vivec's chamber. There was nothing left for them there. It was time for them to move on. Vengeance and destruction was over. It was time to begin new lives. They headed out of Vivec City, never to return.

There was a final message from Lucia, written in golden dust, the dust that was once the god-king Vivec. It spelled out words, Lucia's final message to her mother.

WE WILL MEET AGAIN SOMEDAY

 _fin_

Special thanks to beta readers **Little Miss Diva 152** , **empire1003** , **ShoutFinder** , and **Deliverer**. You guys were an amazing help. Thank you!

To everyone else: Thanks for reading!


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